Sole-pressing machine



A. EPPLER.

SOLE PRESSING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 5. 191B.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

mam-$.5- entor A. EPPLER.

SOLE PRESSING' MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 5. 1918.

1 63,399, I Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

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advantages of which will be obvious to those shoe sole is conveniently controlled by a UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ANDREW EPPLER, F LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, 031 PATEBSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SOLE-PRESSING MACHINE.

. Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

Application filed April 5, 1913. Serial No. 226,903.

To all to 7mm it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW EPPLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sole-Pressing Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to-which it appertains to make and use same.

The present invention relates to sole pressing machines and more particularly machines of this type employed for leveling the soles of turn shoes.

In order to facilitate the operation of turning a shoe the marginal portions of the sole are normally molded to cause them to stand out from the body of the sole and the principal desideratum of the subsequent levcling operation is to flatten out these upstanding margins and restore the sole to its initial form, at the same time smoothing out the surface of the sole and shaping it into conformity with the shape of the last. As a turn shoe is comparatively light andflexible there may be some difliculty in effectually rubbing out and smoothing the sole Without distorting the shoe or straining the seam which connects the upper to the sole. 7

The object of the present invention. is to provide an improved type of leveling ma chine which is especially efficient in connection with the leveling of turn shoes.

With this object in view one feature of the invention contemplates the provision of a pair of leveling belts which are actuated to movetransversely of the sole in opposite directions and are designed to rub out and smooth substantially the entire width of the sole as the shoe is moved thereunder.

A further feature of the inventioncontemplates an adjustment of the belts to vary the angularity of the working portions and enable the belts to impart varying transverse curvatures to different soles.

Still further features of the invention consist in certain novel features of construction, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed, the

skilled in the art from the following description.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the preferred form of the invention,

Figure 1 represents a sideelevation of a leveling machine embodying the several fea' tures of the invention; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the head carrying the leveling belts; Fig. 3 isa detail illustrating a side elevation of the head with the belts removed; Fig. 4 is a detail illustrating the ac tion of the belts upon a shoe sole; and Fig. 5 is a detail illustrating a cross section of the adjustable support for the heads taken upon the line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

The illustrated embodiment of the invention is conveniently shown in connection with a leveling machine of the type disclosed in the patent to Eppler No. 1,004,155, dated September 26, 1911. This machine comprises a. frame having a jack carrier 11 fulcrumed thereon at 12. A shoe supporting jack, indicated at 14:, is pivoted within the carrier'at 15 and 16 so that the shoe may be tipped laterally as the jack moves beneath the leveling device. The jack carrier is actuated to reciprocate the shoe beneath the leveling device by a crank 17 connected with the carrier through the link 18. lhe crank is actuated from a drive pulley 19 having a gear 20 connected thereto which meshes with a large gear 21 connected to the crank 17. The movements of the driving pulley 19 are controlled by a. rocking frame 22 which carries two oppositely rotating pulleys 23 and 24 adapted to engage alternately with the periphery of the large pulley 19 to reverse the rotation of the crank 17 and move the jack carrier in and out. The position of this rocking frame 22 is controlled by a manually actuated hand lever 25 connected with the frame through a yielding link 26 which is adapted to be engaged intermittently by dogs 27 and28 securedin the gear 21 and automatically serving to move the frame 22 into an inoperative position and stop the movement of the jack when it has reached the end of its traverse in either direction. The leveling device is carried upon a head 30 fulcrumed at 31 upon the machine frame and having a rearwardly projecting arm 32 connected with a spring 33 which serves to normally sustain the weight of the head and the leveling device. The pressure of theleveling device upon the treadle 34: connected with the head through a yielding link 35 and the normal position of the head when not in engagement with stile.

the shoe-sole is determined by a stop member 36 supported upon the head and engaging with a stationary bracket 37 forming a part of the machine frame. This construction has been only briefly described as it is fully described in the patent hereinbefore referred to and is well known in this type of machine.

According to the present invention the shoe sole is operated upon during the in and out traversing movements of the jack by. a pair of leveling belts which are moved transversely of the sole and are adapted to operatively engage over the width of the These leveling belts not only shape the sole to the contour of the last but in addition effectually rub out and smooth the surface of the sole, more particularly the marginal portions which are molded into the form shown in dotted lines in Fig.4. This result is attained without tending to displace the sole. relatively to the last or otherwise. distorting the shoe[ A bracket or support 40 is secured to the outer end of the pivoted head. 30 and is. provided .with'ja pair of arms 42, 43, connected thereto by a clamping bolt 44. Each of these arms has a pair of guide pulleys and 4c6journaled upon its opposite ends and over which the leveling belts 48 and 49 pass, The two belts are operated, respectively, by driving members '52 and 53 journaled upon shafts 541 and 55 secured in the upper portion of the support 40. From an inspection of the drawings .it.will' be noted that each belt comprises a seriesof links 57 eachhaving a plane. smooth rubbing face 58. Each of the driving members 52 and 53 is provided with a series of. teeth 60 which engage with and positively drive the links of thebelt. The'two driving members .52 and 53 are.secured, respectively. to intermeshing spur gears 62 and 63. The opposite end of the shaft .55 carrying the gear 63 is provided with a bevel gear 64 which meshes with and is driven by a cooperating bevel gear 65 se- ,QIJI'Qd to .a shaft 66 journaled in the support 40. The shaft 66 is rotatedby a driving chain 68 passing over agear 70 secured to the shaft .66.and a gear 71secured to a The countershaft 72 is through .a pulley 74 and driving belt 75. It will be obvious that this iconstruction serves to actuate thetwo leveling belts in such a manner thatthe working portions travel in opposite directions transversely of the'shoe sole. It will be obvious from an inspection of Fig. 2 of the drawings that the relative positions of the guide pulleys '45 and 46 determine the direction of movement of the working portions of the belt which travel in paths inclined to one another. The

two oppositely traveling beltsrub out a 1 ,ses,see

To this end the arms 42 and 43 have .provision for adjustment in curved ways to vary the relative positions of'thev guide pulleys 4:5. and 46 and in consequence the inclination of that portion of the belt connecting these two pulleys. As will be evident from an inspection of Figs. 2 and 5 the arm, 43 is connected to the support 40 through curved tongue and groove connections 78 and the arm 42 is mounted upon the arm 3 through curved tongue and groove connect-ions indicated at 7 9, and both arms are provided with curved slots 80 which receive the clamping bolt 4 By adjusting the two arms relative to one another in the curved ways the angularity of theworking portions of the belts may be varied without affecting either the pointat which the two belts pass one another above the shoe or the tension upon the beltsthemselves. construction the surface of the sole may be It will be evident that with this efiectually rubbed and smoothed and the marginal portions of the sole flattened out. when. molded. up from the body of the sole.

Inorder to vary the tension upon the leveling belts, as desired or maintain a uniformtensionifthe belts stretch with continued use, each of the pulleys 45 and 4l6 is journaled upon an eccentric stud clamped in the 'split ends of the arms 42 and 43 by a clamping bolt 86,21, 11 as shownin Fig. 2 of the drawings. I

While it is preferred to employ thespecific construction and arrangement of parts shown and descr1bed, it willbe understood that this construction and. arrangement is .not essential except so far as specified in the claims,a nd may be changed or modified without departing from the broaderfeatures of the invention.

The invention having been described, whatisclaimed is: i

1. A sole leveling machine having, incombination, a shoesupporting jack,.a pair of belts supported to rub out and smooth a sole throughout substantially its entire width, means for driving the belt in oppolsite directions transversely of a shoe supported on the jack, and means for actuating the jack to traverse the shoe sole across the belts.

. 2. A sole leveling machinehavlng-in-combin ltion, a shoe supporting jack, apair of leveling belts adapted to engage With a shoe sole throughout substantially the entire Width, means for moving the Working por' tions of the belts in opposite directions transversely of a shoe supported on the jack, and means for reciprocating the jack to traverse the shoe in and out beneath the belts.

8. A sole leveling machine having, in combination, a shoe supporting jack, means for reciprocating the jack, a pair of leveling belts, means for supporting the belts with their Working portions moving in paths inclined in a manner to cause the two belts to operate upon the surface of a shoe sole positioned upon the jack, and means for actuating the belts.

4:. A sole leveling machine having, in combination, a pivoted head, a pair of leveling belts supported upon the head and adapted to move in paths transversely of a shoe sole, a shoe supporting jack, means for reciprocating the jack beneath the belts, and means for counterbalancing the Weight of the head and parts supported thereon.

5. A sole leveling machine having, in combination, a shoe supporting jack, a pair of leveling belts movable transversely oi. the jack, means for oscillating the jack beneath the belts, a pivoted head supporting the belts, and means for normally retaining the head in an elevated position, a treadle and connections between the treadle and head for pressing the belts against a shoe sole.

6. A sole leveling machine comprising a support, a pair of arms adjustably secured to the support, guide pulleys journaled upon the opposite ends of each arm, a leveling belt passing over each pair of guide pulleys, and means for driving the tWo belts in opposite directions.

7. A sole leveling machine comprising a support, a pair of leveling belts carried by the support and having their Working portions movable in paths inclined to one another, means for varying the inclination of the paths of movement of the belts, and means for driving-the belts in opposite directions.

8. A sole leveling machine comprising a support, a pair of curved arms adjustably secured to the support, a leveling belt guided about the opposite ends of each arm, and means for driving the two belts in opposite directions at the same speed.

9. A sole leveling machine comprising a supporting head, a pair of endless leveling belts carried by the head, a pair of arms adjustably secured to the head and each controlling the path of movement of one belt, a driving member for each belt, and means for rotating the two driving members in opposite directions and at the same speed.

ANDREW EPPLER.

It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,863,399, granted December 28, 1920, upon the application of Andrew Ep'pler, of Lynn, Massachusetts, for an improvement in Sole-Pressing Machines, an error appears in the printed specification requiring correction as follows: Page 2, line 124, claim 1, for the Word belt read belts; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 25th day of January, A. D., 1921.

' L. B. MANN,

[SEAL] Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

